Where Is Our Constituency Money? Constituents Ask House of Rep Members

The people of Delta North Senatorial District are demanding accountability regarding the utilization of their constituency intervention funds by their representatives in the House of Representatives.

This rising question is accompanied by agitation that most House of Representatives members from Delta North have shown no tangible evidence of projects or initiatives funded by the over One Billion Naira annual constituency allowance allocated to them to ameliorate the suffering of their constituents.

A notable example is the representative of Ika Federal Constituency, Hon. Victor Nwokolo, who has been in the Green Chamber since 2011.

His initial victory, which saw him win on the platform of the Accord Party after a disputed primary election with Hon. Doris Uboh, was quickly followed by a defection to the main ruling party, PDP upon being sworn in.

Since then, he has consistently retained the seat, a situation which has reportedly disregarded the local rotational agreement between the two constituent local governments, in place since the return to democracy.

Similar concerns of non-performance are being raised against the two other representatives, Hon. Ngozi Okolie and Hon. Ezechie.

Hon. Ngozi Okolie, who defeated the incumbent Hon. Ndudi Elumelu on the platform of the Labour Party (allegedly riding the ‘Peter Obi wave’ in the 2023 general election), is now facing scrutiny.

There are serious allegations that Hon. Okolie allegedly borrowed against his constituency allowances immediately after assuming office.

This raises the question: could this debt servicing be hindering the execution of developmental projects meant for the constituency?

The overarching question remains for all the representatives: What is their justification for the over One Billion Naira constituency allowance they collect annually from the Federal Government?

The constituents are urgently demanding to see tangible evidence of how this substantial public fund has been deployed for the development and welfare of the people they represent.